In the construction of in-ground foundation walls for large buildings, it is typical to dig out (excavate) the earth to the desired depth of the foundation and then build up the foundation walls from the bottom up. Unfortunately, if the foundation wall is large, this can require some substantial shoring of the earth to prevent cave-ins (which are a serious safety risk). The use of temporary shoring structures to prevent cave-ins of the earth adjacent the excavation adds considerably to the cost and time required to construct in-ground foundation walls for large buildings. In addition, if the foundation walls are constructed from the bottom up, extensive scaffolding typically is employed to provide access to the upper reaches of the foundation wall. This scaffolding adds to the complexity and cost of constructing the foundation walls and does not completely eliminate the risk of falling workers (or equipment falling on workers below).
Accordingly, it can be seen that a need exists for an improved method for constructing large in-ground foundation walls. It is to the provision of such that the present invention is primarily directed.